Family DICTYODENDRILLIDAE Bergquist, 1980

Museums

Regional Maps

Diagnosis

Dendroceratida in which the skeleton is reticulate with perfectly regular to slightly irregular mesh and fibres which are strongly and coarsely laminate with a pronounced pith region. Fibres cored or uncored. Fibre skeleton is augmented by free fibrous spicules in one genus. Choanocyte chambers are large, oval and eurpylous. The reticulate skeleton, which arises from a basal spongin plate, permits the sponges to attain large size despite the delicate cavernous nature of the soft tissue. Fibre colour contrasts with that of the soft tissue which is uniformly pigmented throughout.

ID Keys

KEY TO GENERA

(1)Fibre skeleton includes free spiculose elements --------------------------------Igernella
Spiculose elements absent ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2

(2)Fibres cored -----------------------------------------------------------------Acanthodendrilla
Fibres uncored --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3

(3)Surface strongly conulose -------------------------------------------------- Dictyodendrilla
Surface microconulose ------------------------------------------------------------ Spongionella

Diagnosis References

Bergquist, P.R. & Cook, S.D.C. 2002. Family Dictyodendrillidae Bergquist, 1980. pp. 1072-1076 in Hooper, J.N.A. & van Soest, R.W.M. (eds). Systema Porifera: A guide to the classification of sponges. New York : Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers Vol. 1. [1072]

General References

Bergquist, P.R. & Cook, S.D.C. 2002. Family Dictyodendrillidae Bergquist, 1980. pp. 1072-1076 in Hooper, J.N.A. & van Soest, R.W.M. (eds). Systema Porifera: A guide to the classification of sponges. New York : Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers Vol. 1.

History of changes